Melted Snowman Chocolates

There is no better way to bring a little dose of cuteness to your holiday table than with some of these Melted Snowman Chocolates. I first saw this kind of design on a gourmet cookie available at a local specialty store. The cookie version appeared to be entirely made out of icing, but I wanted to turn it into a candy version that could stand alone. The snowmen start out with store-bought marshmallows which are then enrobed in white chocolate and decorated with the eyes, nose and other details that bring them to life.

To start, I dipped the bottom of my marshmallows in white chocolate and let them set up on a baking sheet so that they would stay in place. I left plenty of room for pools of white chocolate between the marshmallows. I poured some white chocolate over the marshmallows to completely cover them, then tapped the baking sheet on the counter to spread the chocolate around them. Then, I allowed the chocolate to set before decorating.

I used high quality white chocolate to make my candies, and tempered it so that my snowmen would have a smooth, shiny finish and a great “snap” when you bite into them. I highly recommend using real white chocolate and following my at-home tempering chocolate guide for the best finished product. Tempering the chocolate will prevent your snowmen from “blooming” as they sit, and will allow the chocolate to set up quickly and keep very well.

That being said, you can make these with a product called “candy melts,” which are a kind of faux chocolate available in a variety of colors. The candy melts don’t need to be tempered and are easy to work with (they are especially great for kids to use), but they don’t have the same creamy vanilla flavor or smooth melt of real white chocolate.

I used (tempered) milk chocolate to draw in the eyes and arms of my snowmen, and white chocolate that I tinted with colored cocoa butter to draw in the orange noses and create their scarves. I used miniature m&ms for their buttons. Instead of drawing the details with melted chocolate, you could use miniature chocolate chips or cocoa nibs for some of the details, and pretzel sticks for the arms. A twisted piece of fruit roll-up could become a perfect scarf. You could even use colored royal icing to draw on the faces instead of more chocolate. You can dress them up or down as much as you like.

Once you have the snowman foundation, you can have a lot of fun with these little guys. They’re completely edible and, although they’re sweet, they are very tasty. They make fun little gifts or stocking stuffers, if you wrap them up and tie them off with a ribbon, and can also be used to garnish dessert plates during the holidays.

Arrange marshmallows upright on a piece of parchment paper on a large baking sheet (or two baking sheets), leaving at least 3-inches between them.
Dip the bottom of each marshmallow into the tempered chocolate and replace on the baking sheet. Allow chocolate to set for 3-4 minutes. Ladle a small amount of white chocolate over each marshmallow (approx 1-oz), making sure that the marshmallow is completely covered by the chocolate. Tap the baking sheet on the counter to smooth the white chocolate and spread it evenly into a pool around the marshmallow.
Tapping the baking sheet at a slight angle will give your chocolate a larger, flat surface to decorate.
Allow white chocolate to set, then decorate.
Tempered milk chocolate can be poured into a pastry bag, or a ziploc bag with the corner snipped off, and piped on to create eyes, mouths, arms and other details. Sprinkles and mini chocolate chips can serve as buttons, etc. Decorate as much or as little as you desire.

Makes 8.

*Note: Candy melts are a chocolate-like product that can also be used that requires no tempering. It can be found at craft stores and is great for kids to work with!